6. EN ESPECIAL: EL NUEVO BAREMO DE TRÁFICO EN LA
6.2 Víctima y perjudicado; Daños a indemnizar
A
aaccqquuiitt - To find a defendant not guilty in a criminal trial.
aaddjjuuddiiccaattiioonn - A judgment or decree.
aaffffiiddaavviitt - A written or printed declaration or state- ment under oath.
aaffffiirrmm - The ruling of an appellate court that the judgment of a lower court is correct and should stand.
aappppeeaall - Review of a case by a higher court. aappppeellllaanntt - Party appealing a decision or judgment to
a higher court.
aappppeelllleeee - The party against whom an appeal is filed. aarrbbiittrraattiioonn - The hearing and settlement of a dispute between opposing parties by a third party whose decision the parties have agreed to accept. aarrrraaiiggnnmmeenntt - A court hearing in a criminal case
where a defendant is advised of the charges and asked to plead guilty or not guilty. Most arraign- ments in Tennessee are held in General Sessions Court.
B
b
baaiill bboonndd - An agreement by a third party to pay a certain sum of money if the defendant fails to appear in court.
b
beenncchh ttrriiaall - Trial held before judge sitting without a jury; jury waived trial.
b
beenncchh wwaarrrraanntt - Process issued by the court or “from the bench” for the attachment or arrest of a per- son.
b
biinnddiinngg oovveerr - The act by which a court or magistrate requires a person to enter into a recognizance or furnish bail to appear for trial, to keep the peace, to attend as a witness, etc. Also describes act of lower court in transferring case to higher court or to grand jury after a finding of probable cause to believe that defendant committed crime. b
brriieeff - A legal document, prepared by an attorney, which presents the law and facts supporting his or her client.
C
ccaasseellooaadd - The number of cases a judge handles. ccaauussee ooff aaccttiioonn - A legal claim.
cceerrttiioorraarrii - A procedure for removing a case from a lower court to a higher court for review. cchhaannggee ooff vveennuuee - Moving a case from one court, or
location, to another.
cciivviill llaaww - All law that is not criminal law.
ccllaassss - There are five classifications of felonies and three classifications of misdemeanors. With the exception of murder in the first degree, all
felonies in the Revised Criminal Code, in the old Title 39 and in titles other than Title 39 are clas- sified. Each felony has an A, B, C, D, or E clas- sification. “A” is the most serious and “E” is the least serious. Each misdemeanor has either an A, B, or C classification with “A” being most seri- ous and “C” being least serious. Murder in the first degree carries three possible penalties: life (with the possibility of parole), life without parole, and death.
ccooddee - A collection of laws promulgated by legisla- tive authority.
ccoommmmoonn llaaww - A system of jurisprudence based on precedent rather than statutory laws.
ccoommmmuuttaattiioonn - Change of punishment from a greater to a lesser degree or ending a sentence that has been partially served.
ccoorrppuuss ddeelliiccttii - The body or material substance upon which crime has been committed; e.g., the corpse of a murdered person or the charred remains of a burned house.
D
d
dee nnoovvoo - “Anew.” A trial de novo is a completely new trial.
d
deeccllaarraattoorryy jjuuddggmmeenntt - A judgment declaring the rights of the parties on a question of law. d
deeccrreeee - Decision or order of the court. A final decree completes the suit; an interlocutory decree is provisional or preliminary. d
deeffaauulltt jjuuddggmmeenntt - Under Rules of Civil Procedure, when a party against whom a judgment for affir- mative relief is sought has failed to plead (i.e.,
answer) or otherwise defend, he is in default and a judgment by default may be entered either by the clerk or the court.
d
deeffeennddaanntt - A person charged with a crime or a per- son against whom a civil action is brought. d
deeppoossiittiioonn - Sworn testimony taken outside the court- room according to the rules of the court. d
diissccoovveerryy - A pretrial proceeding where a party to an action may be informed of the facts known by other parties or witnesses.
d
doocckkeett - Book containing entries of all proceedings in a court.
d
doouubbllee jjeeooppaarrddyy - Prohibition against more than one prosecution for the same crime.
d
duuee pprroocceessss - Constitutional guarantee that an accused person receives a fair and impartial trial.
E
eenn bbaanncc - “On the bench.” All judges of a court sit- ting together to hear a case.
eett aall.. - “and others.”
eexxccuullppaattoorryy eevviiddeennccee BB - Evidence indicating that a defendant did not commit the crime.
eexx ppaarrttee - A proceeding brought for the benefit of one party only without notice to or challenge by an adverse party.
F
ffeelloonnyy - A serious criminal offense for which the min- imum sentence is one year.
G
g
grraanndd jjuurryy - A panel of citizens sworn to inquire into crime and if appropriate bring accusations, or indictments, against the suspects.
g
guuaarrddiiaann aadd lliitteemm - A person appointed by a court to manage the interests of a minor or incompetent person whose property is involved in litigation.
H
h
haabbeeaass ccoorrppuuss - “You have the body.” A writ of habeas corpus requires that a person be brought before a judge. It is usually used to direct an official to produce a prisoner so the court may determine if liberty has been denied without due process.
I
iinn ccaammeerraa BB - in chambers; in private.
iinnddiiccttmmeenntt - Written accusation of a grand jury charging a crime.
iinnjjuunnccttiioonn - Court orders prohibiting specific actions from being carried out.
iinntteerrrrooggaattoorriieess - Written questions which must be answered under oath.
J
jjuuddggmmeenntt - Final determination by a court. jjuuddggmmeenntt ddooccuummeenntt - Document that explains the
sentence an offender receives from a trial court. jjuurriisspprruuddeennccee - The science of law.
L
lleesssseerr iinncclluuddeedd ooffffeennssee - a crime composed of some, but not all, of the elements of a greater crime; commission of the greater crime automatically includes commission of the lesser included offense.
lliimmiitteedd jjuurriissddiiccttiioonn - Courts limited in the types of criminal and civil cases they may hear. lliittiiggaanntt - Person or group engaged in a lawsuit.
M
m
miissddeemmeeaannoorr - Criminal offense that is less than a felony and punishable by less than a year in jail. m
miittiiggaattiinngg cciirrccuummssttaanncceess - Do not justify or excuse an offense, but may be considered as reasons for reducing the degree of blame.
m
moottiioonn - Oral or written request before, during or after a trial on which a court issues a ruling or order.
m
moooott - Unsettled or undecided.
N
n
neegglliiggeennccee - The absence of ordinary care. n
noolloo ccoonntteennddeerree - Latin phrase meaning “I will not contest it”; a plea in a criminal case which has a similar legal effect as pleading guilty. A defen- dant may plead nolo contendere only with the consent of the court.
O
o
oppiinniioonn,, ppeerr ccuurriiaamm - Phrase used to distinguish an opinion of the whole court from an opinion written by only one judge.
P
p
paarroollee - The conditional and revocable release of an inmate by the Board of Paroles to parole super- vision.
p
peerreemmppttoorryy cchhaalllleennggee - Procedure for rejecting prospective jurors without a reason. Each side is permitted a limited number of peremptory chal- lenges.
p
poowweerr ooff aattttoorrnneeyy - Document authorizing another to act as one ’s agent or attorney in fact (not an attorney at law).
p
prroobbaabbllee ccaauussee - Reasonable belief that a crime has been committed; the basis for all lawful searches. p
prroobbaattee - The legal process of establishing the validi- ty of a will and settling an estate.
p
prroobbaattiioonn - A sentence of confinement which is sus- pended upon a term of probation supervision. It may include community service or restitution or both. Probation must automatically be consid- ered if the defendant is eligible.
p
prroo bboonnoo - Legal services provided without attorney fees.
p
prroo ssee - Legal representation of oneself p
R
rreemmaanndd - To send back.
S
sseenntteennccee,, ccoonnccuurrrreenntt - Two or more sentences which run at the same time.
sseenntteennccee,, ccoonnsseeccuuttiivvee - Two or more sentences which run one after another.
sseenntteennccee,, ddeetteerrmmiinnaattee - A sentence that states exactly the time to be served or money to be paid. sseeqquueesstteerr aa jjuurryy - To place members of a jury into 24
hour a day seclusion until a verdict is reached. sseettttlleemmeenntt ccoonnffeerreennccee - A meeting between parties of
a lawsuit, their attorneys and a judge to attempt a resolution of the dispute without a trial. ssttaattuuttee - A law created by the Legislature.
ssttaayy - Halting a judicial proceeding by order of the court.
ssuubbppooeennaa - A written legal notice requiring a person to appear in court and give testimony or produce documentary evidence.
ssuubbppooeennaa dduucceess tteeccuumm - “Under penalty you shall take it with you.” A process by which the court commands a witness to produce specific docu- ments or records in a trial.
T
ttoorrtt - An injury or wrong committed with or without force to the person or property of another giv- ing rise to a claim for damages.
V
v
veennuuee - The specific county, city or geographical area in which a court has jurisdiction.
v
vooiirr ddiirree - (pronounced “vwar-deer”) - “To speak the truth.” The process of preliminary examina- tion of prospective jurors regarding their quali- fications.
W
w
wrriitt - A written court order directing a person to per- form or refrain from performing a specific act. w
wrriitt ooff mmaannddaammuuss - An order issued by a court of superior jurisdiction commanding performance of a particular act by an inferior court or public official.
THE FIRST AMENDMENT CENTER The First Amendment Center works to preserve and protect First Amendment freedoms through information and education. The center serves as a forum for the study and exploration of free-expression issues, including the freedoms of speech, press and religion and the rights to assemble and to petition the government.
The center is housed in the John Seigenthaler Center at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. It also has offices in Arlington, Va. It is an operating program of the Freedom Forum, a nonpartisan foundation dedicated to free press, free speech and free spirit for all people.
Underwriting for this book provided by: First Amendment Center
Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association Tennessee Coalition for Open Government Society of Professional Journalists, Middle Tennessee Chapter Knoxville News-Sentinel The Tennessean
The Tennessee Supreme Court and the First Amendment Center thank everyone involved in producing this updated “Media Guide to Tennessee’s Legal System.” Attorneys Robb Harvey and Douglas R. Pierce and Assistant District Attorney Kathy Morante were among those who contributed a great deal of material to the revised Media Guide. Attorneys Greg Ramos and Charles Grant were among the volunteers who helped produce the first handbook and therefore contributed to this one.
1207 18th Ave., South Nashville, TN 37212 (615) 727-1600
www.firstamendmentcenter.org Tennessee Supreme Court
Administrative Office of the Courts
511 Union Street, Suite 600 Nashville, TN 37219 (615) 741-2687 www.tsc.state.tn.us